CINCINNATI – Dozens of young skateboarders now have a spot to call their own in Lower Price Hill after city leaders, community partners and a country music star unveiled the Warsaw Federal Skate Park Wednesday afternoon.
The skate spot at the recreation area on Evans Street is the signature project of the recently completed Lower Price Hill Neighborhood Enhancement Program (NEP).
“This skate park is the ultimate symbol of what can be accomplished through public-private partnerships,” said City Manager Harry Black. “Through this project and the NEP, we’ve made a meaningful and sustainable investment toward the continued invigoration of Lower Price Hill.”
The Warsaw Federal Skate Park Design is accessible to skateboards, bicycles and scooters. Design elements include a 35-foot-by-68-foot concrete pump track, several grind rails and a skate ledge. The park also features a skateboard-shaped skate bench donated by country music artist Kip Moore through his foundation, Kip’s Kids Fund.
Moore and his band traveled to Cincinnati from Nashville, Tennessee, to take part in the big reveal, which included a public ceremony and skateboard demonstrations.
"I'm always searching for purpose in my life,” Moore said. "I battle the feeling of if I'm doing enough with the small amount of time I have on this earth each day. I'm so blessed to get to do what I do, but I have always believed with those blessings come responsibility. Days like today give me that feeling of purpose. I get to see a direct impact in a needed community. I get to see the smiles on these kids’ faces and the positive impact it creates. There are so many things I want to do in the inner cities and this is just the beginning.”
In all, 15 sponsors contributed more than $73,000 to fund this community-driven project. Several additional in-kind donations resulted in free skateboards, helmets, knee pads, and backpacks filled with T-shirts and socks for local children.
The momentum in Lower Price Hill continues Thursday morning as the Cincinnati Reds hold their Community Makeover event at three locations in the neighborhood, rain or shine.
More than 300 representatives from Procter & Gamble, the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, and the Reds Community Fund will take part in a series of day-long improvement projects including the Neave Street community garden and the new home for Santa Maria Community Services. The Evans Street baseball field adjacent to the new skate park is the focal point of the effort.
This is the first time the Community Makeover and the NEP have partnered to leverage resources in the same community at the same time.
The team behind the Lower Price Hill NEP has been busy and productive over the past few months. From March 1 to May 31, their efforts led to a 55 percent reduction in crime, a 14.5 percent reduction in blight, the creation of a new nature playscape on Storrs Street, youth health initiatives and various cleanup projects that resulted from nearly 1,000 total hours of volunteered time.
The City’s 22nd NEP will kick off in mid-August in Mount Auburn.
